Pope Francis Pleads For Safeguard Of Syria Civilians

On Friday, Turkey, which backs other rebel groups in the province, officially designated Tahrir al-Sham, which has presence in Idlib, as a "terrorist" organisation. Tens of thousands were bused there as part of surrender deals with the government.

United Nations envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura told reporters that talks between major powers this month on setting up a committee to lead constitutional reform in Syria will be a "moment of truth" for a credible political process.

"A worst-case scenario in Idlib will overwhelm capacities and has the potential to create a humanitarian emergency at a scale not yet seen through this crisis", John Ging, who heads operations and advocacy for the UN's humanitarian coordination office told the Security Council this week. Turkey also wants the return of Syrian refugees to their countries soon, if there is no threat against them either by the terrorist groups or by the regime.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has warned Russian Federation that seeking a military solution in Idlib would cause "catastrophe" and trigger an new influx of refugees across its borders.

An offensive is likely to first strike southwest Idlib and al-Ghab plains, which overlook the coastal area where Russian Federation has its military and naval bases. The country's defense minister and intelligence chief have visited Moscow while Iran's foreign minister has held meetings in Ankara over the past few days. But it would hardly signal the end of the conflict or its miseries.

For months, Syria has been planning a decisive operation to purge terrorists from Idlib, the last of its provinces that still remain under the control of militants.

The situation in Idlib is complex as it has emerged as the main destination for the rebels who surrendered in many areas across Syria. Russian Federation has said a military operation there is necessary to weed out "terrorists" it blames for attacking its bases on the coast. "Not good. The world is watching". They also called on residents to take up arms and support front-line fighters.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Syrian forces have deployed at least 2,000 armored vehicles along the front lines surrounding Idlib and Hama.An offensive is likely to first strike southwest Idlib and al-Ghab plains, which overlook the coastal area where Russian Federation has its military and naval bases.

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"The U.S sees this as an escalation of an already risky conflict", Pompeo said on Twitter in a post that also lambasted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for defending Syria's assault plans.

"They will also underscore that the United States will respond to any chemical weapons attack perpetrated by the Syrian regime", the State Department said.

Despite these worldwide pleas, Syrian and Russian officials over the weekend were openly preparing to oust the formidable rebel forces in the province.

Turkey has named an al-Qaida affiliate in Syria a terror organization to include the group's rebranded name.

Turkey says it is seeking to ward off a full-scale offensive, urging Russian Federation and Iran to allow more time to separate "radical militants" from the armed groups it has backed.

They would involve anti-aircraft, anti-submarine and anti-mining exercises. Lavrov last week described Idlib as a "festering abscess" that needed to be drained. Idlib is the only Syrian region under the control of the local opposition and the remnants of the forces of the terrorist group "Islamic state of Iraq and the Levant".

Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend a three-way summit in Tehran on September, 7, with the leaders of Turkey and Iran, his spokesman said on Friday.

He claims the number of foreign terrorist fighters could be as high as 15,000.

Abdurrahman said two other bridges remain in the area and could be used by government forces to move in on the rebel stronghold.

"Idlib is very densely populated". In the list, in addition to the military government bases SAR - dozens of civilian targets.

She said violence could force as many as 800,000 people to flee in one of the Syrian war's largest displacements yet.

Unlike other areas that have been reclaimed by recent government offensives, Idlib is not totally besieged.

Mahmoud Yo'reb, an anti-government activist from Daraa in southwestern Syria, which fell to the government in July, said the Syrian army had conscripted hundreds of former rebels, including some of his friends.

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